Feeding devices for pressing and other machines



FEEDING DEVICES FOR PRESSING AND OTHER MACHINES Filed March 24, 1954 2hee ts-Sheet 1 INVENTOR G-EOHGEFCLARK ATTORNEY-Y FEEDING DEVICES FORPRESSING AND OTHER MACHINES Filed March 24, 1954 G. F. CLARK Feb. 4,1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR GE Rc-E F7 CLARK United States PatentFEEDING DEVICES FOR rREssING AND OTHER MACHINES George Frederick Clark,West Drayton, England Application March 24, 1954, Serial No. 418,426

5 Claims. (Cl. 271-25) This invention relates to feeding devices formachine tools such as punch presses andthe like and has'particularreference to such a device which comprises areciprocable carrier,operable by a machine tool, and mounting a blade or element which isadapted to engage the material to be fed during the forward stroke ofthe carrier, and thereby feed the material to the tool.

The object of the present invention is to provide a device of the abovementioned character which is positive in its action and which providesfor the easy insertion of the material into the device and its removaltherefrom.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists inproviding a device for feeding strip material into pressing and othermachine tools comprisinga base carrying a spring loaded lever adaptedtobe actuated by a device connected with the machine tool, a feeding bladeconnected with the lever, a reciprocable carrier for the feeding blade,manually operable means adapted to be moved towards or away from thefeedi'ng blade and means to hold the material during the return strokeof the carrier, the arrangement being such that the material can beinserted into the feeding device or removed therefrom from one side ofthe said feeding device.

The invention also consists in providinga-device wherein the feeding ofthe material is effected'byfthemovement of the lever in one directionand the return orznonfeeding stroke of the gripping mechanismis:effectedsolely by the spring connected with the lever.

The invention further consists in providinga feeding device for amachine tool comprising a base having *an upstanding part at one endwhich pivotal-1y :mounts a 4 spring loaded lever, means on the leverwhereby it may be oscillated on its pivots by a machine tool engagingthe said means, a link connecting the lever to a feeding blade carriedby a reciprocable carrier slidableion the base and disposed to one sidethereof, a manually operable member on the carrier adapted -to be movedtowards or away from the feeding blade,-a spring loaded rockable bladedisposed at the other end of the base and a manually operable memberadapted to be moved'towards or away from the spring loaded blade, thearrangement beingsuch that strip material may be inserted intothe devicefrom one side thereof to be engaged by the bladesand held therein by theengagement therewith of the manually operable members, the feeding bladeserving to grip the'm aterial during the feeding stroke of the carrierand=the other blade acting to hold the material during the return strokeof the feeding blade.

The invention also includes means whereby the blades may be adjusted tosuit various thicknesses of material, and means, for the support of thematerial, whichvisadjustable for different widths and thicknessofrmaterial.

The invention will now be described, 'by -wayof example, with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a feedingjdevice inaccordance with thepresent invention;

Figure 2 is a plan thereof;

2,822,168 patented Feb. 4-, 1958 Figure 3 is a vertical section on lineIII-HI of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an end elevation in the direction of the arrow A;

Figure 5 is a section on line VV of- Figure 2, irrelevant parts beyondthe section plane being omitted;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the feeder bladeand-its mounting;

Figure 7 is a perspective viewof the holding blade and'its mounting;

Figure 8 is an elevation of the reciprocating carrier viewed from thedirection of the arrow B of Figure 2 and Figure 9 is a fragmentarydetail showing a part of the underside of the carrier and the springwhich imparts friction between the slide and the carrier-and so preventsanyside play of the carrier while it is being reciprocated and to ensurethe gripping blade operatingbefore the movement of the carrier.

As shown the device for feeding stock such as strip material into amachine tool such as a press tool comprises a base 1 having anupstanding hollow casing 2 formed with a lug '3 in which is .mounted'foroscillation a spindle 4 of a lever 5 carrying at its upper end a roller6 adapted to *be engaged by the press tool, not shown. This lever 5 isconveniently in the form ofa box-like structure and its upper end isfitted with .a spindle' 7 on which the roller 6 is mounted for rotationpreferably on needle rollers or other anti-friction means. To the lowerend of this lever 5 is connected pivotally a link"8 connected to apin-like extension 9 of a crank member 10 formed with a feeding blade11. This crank member 10 is mounted in a manner to be hereinafterdescribed in a carrier 12 adapted to reciprocate on a plate or slidemember 13 secured at one end by screw members 14 to the base 1. Thiscarrier 12 is adapted to be moved forwardly to feed-strip materialindicated at 15 into the press tool when the lever 5 is actuated by forinstance a cam or other means, not shown, engaging the roller 6. Thisforward feeding is effected against the action of a spring 16.Conveniently this spring 16 in the form of a coiled tension spring isconnected at one end to a lug 17 formed on the lever '5 and at its otherto a lug 18 screwed into the base 1 the spring- 16 being mounted withinthe hollow casing 2. An adjustable stop 19 adapted to be actuated by amicrometer 20 is fitted in the base 1 to limit the rearward movementofthe carrier '12. This carrier 12-preferab-ly in the form of a castingisformed with a lug or extension 21 to engage the stop 19, and is alsoformed on its lower side with a recess 22 having surfaced side walls 23to slide on the sides of the plate or slide member 13. The lower endsurfaces of the side walls 23 are arranged in line with the underside ofthe plate or slide member 13 and to these lower end surfaces are fittedsurface plates 24 and 25 to co-operate with'the underside 'of the platemember 13 and thus prevent any upward movement of the carrier 12. Toprevent any sideway movement one side 23 is formed with a recess 26 inwhich is mounted a spring 27 comprising a fiat surface to co-operatefrictionally with one side of the plate or slide member 13 and havingspring-like curved extensions 28 to engage in the recess. The base ofthis recess '26 is closed by the surface plate '25. The other surfaceplate 24 is slotted at'29 for the reception of the pin-like extension ofthe crank member lll. These surface plates 24 and 25 are held inposition by screws '30 preferably having milled heads and hexagonallyshaped recesses for the insertion of a tool of similar shape'wherebythey may be firmly securedto' hold the 'surface'plates or readilyunscrewed for removal. The crank member 10 formed with the feeding blade'11 has its spindle' 3'1 mounted eccentrically 3 in a sleeve 32rotatably mounted in a recess 33 formed in the casting of the feedcarrier 12. This sleeve 32 which carries the crank member having thefeeding blade 11 shown more particularly in Figure 6 is cut away at 34for the feeding blade 11 and is divided at 35 to facilitate assembly.The outer end of this sleeve 32 is formed with a slot 36 whereby it maybe adjusted by a screwdriver to raise or lower the feeding blade 11which is formed with a knife edge 37 to engage the strip material 15. Toprevent axial movement of the sleeve 32 it is formed with acircumferential groove 33 in which is mounted the end of a screw 39threaded into the side of an upper extension of the feed carrier 12. Inorder to enable the strip material 15 to be fed into the side of thefeeding device and to maintain it in position to be engaged by thefeeding blade 11 the carrier 12 is fitted with an anvil-like devicecomprising a pressure block 40 pivotally mounted at 41 in a forkedbracket 42 formed on the carrier 12. This pressure block 40 is pivotallyconnected by means such as links 43 to a forked end of a handle lever 44having a fulcrum 45 in the bracket 42. These links 43 are pivoted at 46to the pressure block 40 and at 47 to the forked end of the handle lever44. Thus the handle lever 44 when in its raised position will permit thestrip material 15 to be inserted in the device and will when lowered tobeyond its dead centre maintain the pressure block 40 on the stripmaterial 15 so that it can be engaged by the feeding blade 11. Thisarrangement thus provides an adjustment for the thickness of the stripmaterial. In order to prevent backward movement of the strip materialthe main base casting 1 is fitted with a further knife edged blade 48.This blade 48 is adapted to pivot on a spindle 49 formed eccentricallyon a sleeve 50 rotatably mounted in a cylindrical recess 51 formed inthe base casting 1. This blade 48 and its carrying sleeve 50 is shownmore particularly in Figure 7. The outer end of the sleeve 50 is formedwith means such as a slot 52 whereby it may be adjusted by for instancea screwdriver to raise or lower the blade. To prevent axial movement ofthe sleeve 50 it is formed with a circumferential groove 53 in which ismounted the end of a screw 54 threaded into the base 1. The blade 48 isnormally held in its raised position by pressure of a coiled spring 55engaging through the medium of a pin 56 a curved or part sphericalextension 57 of the blade member 48. Above the blade 48 is fitted afurther anvillike device comprising a pressure block 58 pivotallymounted at 59 in a forked bracket 60 formed on the base casting 1. Thispressure block 58 is connected by links 61 to the forked end of ahandle-lever 62 having a fulcrum 63 in the bracket 60. This anvil-likedevice is similar to the other anvil device previously described and isadapted to be operated in a similar manner. Thus the blade 48 will turnagainst the action of the spring 55 to permit the strip material to bemoved forwardly by a gripping blade 11 but any rearward or returnmovement will be prevented by the blade 4S engaging the strip material.In order to prevent side displacement of the material while passingthrough the device a transversely adjustable forked-like carrier 64 ismounted on the base 1. This carrier 64 is fitted at one end with arotatably mounted guide roller 65 and a similar guide roller 66 ismounted on the base 1. This latter roller 66 is adapted to rotate on acylindrical sleeve 67 mounted on a stud 6S screwed into the base 1. Thecarrier 64 is slotted at 69 throughout its length so that it can he slidunder the sleeve 67 of the roller 66 and under an L shaped guide plate70 carried by the lug 18 to which the end of the spring 16 is secured.Thus the outer guide roller 65 can be adjusted according to the width ofthe strip material. When the strip material is in position between theguide rollers 65 and 66 the stud 68 carrying the latter roller 66 can bescrewed down to secure the forked carrier 64 in its adjusted position.The base 1 and the slide plate 13 are provided with apertures 71 wherebythe above described feeding device can be secured on or adjacent to thepress tool 4 or the like. The stop 19 which is adapted to be actuated bythe micrometer 20 to limit the rearward movement of the carrier 12 isformed with a longitudinal groove to receive the end of a screw 72 toprevent its rotation when adjusted by the micrometer 2%.

In operation and when the device is being put to use, the levers 44 and62 are lifted and the material 15, strip metal for instance, is placedon the blades 11 and 48 and rested on the surface at the end of the baseand on the carrier 64 which is adjusted so that the rollers 65 and 66engage the side edges of the strip. The levers 44 and 62 are then moveddownwardly to cause the anvils 40 and 58 respectively to press the strip15 onto the blades. As soon as the device is set in motion by the pressmachine engaging the roller 6 of the lever 5 the pull on the link 8,connected to the feeder blade 11 causes the latter to tilt so that itsknife edge 37 thereof bites slightly into the strip 15 so that it isgripped. The carrier 12 together with the feeder blade 11 is then drawnforward to feed the strip into the press. At the commencement of thereturn stroke of the carrier 12, the feeder blade 11 is initially tiltedso that the gripping action is relaxed thus enabling the carrier 12 toreturn to its former position without drawing the strip with it. It willbe seen that the friction of the carrier 12 with the plate or slidemember 13 is such that the initial movements of the feeder blade 11 cantake place before the carrier 12 commences to move. In order to effect afine adjustment of the amount of grip, the angular position of the blademay be adjusted as previously described through the medium of itseccentric mounting.

So that a minute adjustment of the amount of feed may be made, themovable stop 19 is adjusted by the micrometer 20 which projects beyondthe base 1 and is furnished with the usual hub and thimble, for theadjust ment of the stop.

It will be understood that the blade 48 to prevent return or backwardmovement of the stop is so spring loaded, preferably by its torsionspring 55, that the edge of the blade is constrained to grip the stripmaterial when inserted between the blade and anvil. The blade 48 isinclined in the direction of the feed, consequently it offers but littleresistance to the forward movement of the strip, but any tendency forthe strip to move back during the return stroke of the carrier willcause the blade to tilt and grip the strip owing to the action of thespring, and thus prevent any such backward movement of the strip. Theextent to which the strip may be gripped may be adjusted by partialrotation of the sleeve 59 as previously described. It will be seen thatheight of both of the blades 11 and 48 can be readily adjusted owing totheir eccentric mounting.

It will be clear from the foregoing description that a strip of materialcan be quickly inserted in the feeder device from one side thereof andjust as easily removed, whereas in other feeding devices it has beennecessary to thread the material through the device from one end whichoperation takes some appreciable time. One advantage of the deviceaccording to the present invention, is that, should it be necessary tore-position the material being fed to a machine tool, the operation canbe speedily done.

Previous feeding devices rely upon the spring to feed the material. Inthis device the spring is used to return the gripping mechanism only andthe press or punching machine provides the power used for feeding thematerial.

What I claim is:

1. A feeding device for a machine tool comprising a base, an upstandingpart at one end thereof, a spring loaded lever pivotally mounted on saidpart, means on the lever whereby it may be oscillated by a machine toolengaging said means, a reciprocable carrier slidably a manually operablemember mounted on the carrier for movement toward and from the feedingblade, a rockable spring loaded blade at the other end of the base, anda manually operable member movable toward and from the rockable blade,the feeding blade being connected to a crank member, a link connectingthe crank member and spring loaded lever, the crank member beingeccentrical- 1y mounted in a sleeve, and the sleeve rotatably mounted inthe carrier, means being provided to maintain the sleeve in variouspositions.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sleeve is cut away toreceive the feeding blade, is split at one end to facilitate assemblyand the other end is provided with a tool receiving formation foradjustment, and a circumferential groove is formed in the sleeve for thereception of locking means, locking means being provided therefore.

3. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a sleeve is rotatably mountedin the base, a spindle is formed eccentrically on the sleeve, the springloaded blade is pivotally mounted on the spindle, and means are providedto adjust and maintain the sleeve in axially rotated positions, toadjust the height of the said blade.

4. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the manually operable memberincludes a pivotally mounted pressure block, said block being carried bya bracket, said bracket being mounted on the carrier, and means areprovided for operating the same including link means comprising deadcenter mechanisms connecting the block to a handle lever, the handlelever being fulcrumed in the bracket, whereby manipulation of the saidmeans by the lever to operate the link means eflects gripping action ofthe block against material being fed and thereby against the blade.

5. A device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the manually operable membercomprises a pressure block, a bracket is formed on the base, the blockis pivotally mounted in the bracket, a handle lever is fulcrumed in thebracket, and links connect the block to the lever, manipulation of thelever causing the pressure block to engage material to be fed and holdthe same in contact With the spring loaded blade.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTSMarsilius Mar. 2, 1954

